Nougat 16

Recently I have had one of the WCC assembly songs going through my mind on and off. The first line says ‘Open up my eyes, so that I may see …’ I’ve sung it a lot but perhaps not enough as my eyes have not always been opened up to God’s perspective. Like in today’s Holy Nougat

“Then they entered the Cluster ravine, cut down from there a branch with one cluster of grapes, and carried it on a pole between them. They also took pomegranates and figs.” ‭‭Numbers‬ ‭13‬:‭23‬ ‭CEB‬‬

Perspective

Sent to reconnoitre, they are confronted with fertile, untainted, somewhat untamed land. They were ‘spies’, or surveyors depending on your perspective. Spies were from enemy territory, who pretended to be normal people, while taking note of all vulnerabilities to use for the enemy’s advantage. The Canaanites knew that those men were spies.

As representatives from the nation in formation, they were openly though discreetly surveying the land that would become their new home. After 400+ years under enslavement and another 40 years traveling to the Promise, they needed to know the place they were about to ‘inherit’. From that perspective, they were merely surveyors.

Perspective

But there were other aspects to be considered. The land for the taking was populated with giants (wild, undefeated people, perhaps descended from the Nephelim), who were attached to their’ land. I suspect that would be grounds for war. And the odds seemed skewed in the giants’ favor. Peaceful, or even Amicable Coexistence was not an option. And it still isn’t. The Giants vs The Promised – who’d you bet on? Home advantage with the Giants or Divine appointment with ex-slaves?

Perspective

A delegation of Twelve were sent to scope out their new home. They were specially chosen by God through Moses for that assignment. Soon after, they split up and only two were together at this juncture in our nougat. Yes, the land was fertile and arable, but not necessarily navigable. Figs and pomegranates grew freely alongside giant grapes – in a ravine. Did you even see the ravine, or were you too focused on the ‘ready food’ to notice? They were. So much so that they devised a way to transport the grapes back uncrushed by using a pole carried on their shoulders. So … ravine or grapes?

Perspective

God gifts us with bountiful blessings, beginning with a new day – 24 hours to use as we see fit. Opportunities disguised as challenges to help us appreciate all God has in store for us. Disappointments walking alongside (or even ahead of) joys and successes – ours for the choosing. Do we see God’s Spirit at work, or are we overcome by the ‘task’ set before us? Can we appreciate that God knows we are capable of success, or do we yield to the ‘giants’ of fear of failure?

Perspective

Ma peeps, God sees successful surveyors, not defeated ex-slaves. In Christ, we are already free. In Christ, we have the victory. In Christ, we can do all things. In Christ, we are not defeated. Or are we?

Perspective

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May all we seek be found in Christ